At the forefront of health equity.

Health equity means that everyone can live their healthiest life.

To you, our community

Health equity matters. That’s why the University of Chicago Medicine has made significant investments towards community benefits on Chicago’s South Side and in the south suburbs. Over the past 10 years, UChicago Medicine’s reported community investments have totaled more than $5 billion.

Since 2013, we have more than doubled our annual community benefit investment. We are proud of the partnerships that have made this possible, and we will continue working toward a world where your ZIP code doesn’t determine how healthy you can be.

In fiscal 2023, UChicago Medicine’s community benefit investment was $730.9 million – including $636.6 million through the University of Chicago Medical Center on the city’s South Side and $94.3 million through UChicago Medicine Ingalls Memorial in Harvey, Illinois.

Compared to other Chicagoland neighborhoods, residents of Chicago’s South Side and south suburbs have, on average, a lower life expectancy, higher incidence of chronic disease and fewer nearby healthcare providers. Our investments support programs and partnerships designed to reduce the health disparities that disproportionately affect people of color who live in these areas. This means improving access to healthcare and other resources; conducting screenings to prevent severe disease; and funding grassroots organizations that help prevent violence in their communities.

Community benefit investments help cover medical expenses for patients with financial need. They also support research and training for the next generation of physicians, nurses and other healthcare professionals. Every year, we assess ways we can better support our communities. We are grateful to the members of our Community Advisory Councils, faith leaders, and other community partners who provide guidance for this work.

We invite you to explore this Community Benefit Report website to learn about the programs, partnerships and investments that help community members live their healthiest lives.

The urban health initiative

#UCMSERVES

The Urban Health Initiative (UHI) is UChicago Medicine's community health division. The UHI oversees population health management and community benefit programs, using a shared community-based approach to solve the problems and meet the health and social needs of the South Side and Southland communities.

UHI works to foster strong, lasting relationships with civic leaders, community organizations, healthcare providers and residents to strategically improve health and access to quality care for the communities UChicago Medicine serves.

UHI’s care coordination model

The Urban Health Initiative oversees three Care Coordination programs targeted to serve specific populations with needs prioritized by the Community Health Needs Assessment:

UHI Care
Coordination
Programs

Violence Recovery Program (Violence Recovery Specialists)

Patient-centered trauma responsive program that focuses on building trust with individuals and families who experience community violence.

Liaisons in Care (LinC) Program (Community Health Workers)

Patient-centered program that leverages Community Health Workers to address health inequities for chronic disease within healthcare, community, and home settings.

Medical Home Specialty Connection Program (Patient Advocates)

Emergency-department based program that seeks to educate patients on the importance of primary care and supports patients with follow-up care after an emergency visit.

Care coordination programs are not stand-alone programs; they are connected to one another and to external community health programs.

UHI care coordination teams are:

Hospital-based so they can work together
Trained in how to make inter-program referrals and use the resources of all three programs (and the hospital at large) to best serve patients
Encouraged and expected to participate in community events
Connected to external community programs including:
- The South Side Healthy Community Organization
- Community-based organizations
- External hospital and Federally Qualified Health Centers partners

2021-2022 Community health needs assessment

Identifying the greatest health challenges on the South Side and in the Southland

Every three years, the University of Chicago Medical Center and UChicago Medicine Ingalls Memorial conduct a Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA). The assessments identify community health priorities. They help us decide where to place resources that can improve the health and wellness of community members.

Both hospitals collected primary and secondary data to determine the health priorities in their respective service areas for fiscal 2023-2025. UChicago Medicine staff worked with internal teams and community partners, including faculty, the Community Benefit Steering Committee, and the Community Advisory Council.

FISCAL
2023-2025 Health Priorities

Based on the information from the University of Chicago Medical Center’s 2021-2022 Community Health Needs Assessment, the following are the South Side’s top priorities for the next three years:

Prevent and Manage Chronic Diseases

Heart Disease
Diabetes
Cancer

Build Trauma Resiliency

Violence Prevention
& Recovery
Mental Health

Reduce Inequities Caused by Social Determinants of Health

Access to Care
Food Insecurity
Workforce Development

To read the full Community Health Needs Assessment, Executive Summary, Evaluation Report, or Strategic Implementation Plan visit our webpage.

Please see the Ingalls Memorial page for their health priorities.

UChicago
Medicine
Service Areas

Medical Center

South Side ZIP Codes

Chicago Community Areas (Neighborhoods)

Ingalls

ZIP Codes in Thornton Township

Southern Suburbs

For more information on communities in our South Side service area, visit our Community Health Profiles compiled using data from the 2018-2019 University of Chicago Medical Center Community Health Needs Assessment.